Edward Rall, 44, came from a family of firefighters: a grandfather, two uncles and a couple of cousins. His two brothers were NYPD officers. He loved the job and made a point of keeping fit enough to do the rigorous work demanded of Rescue companies. He had been with Rescue 2 for more than six years.
Rall had three sons: 16, 14 and 12. He coached the two who played baseball and went to cheer on the marching band competitions for the other. In the summertime, the family stayed close to home. His wife remembers him with a cigar and a light beer, sitting on the porch he added to their house, barbequing dinner with friends. “It was a very simple life,” she said. They liked it that way.